When the child is born, many signs and symptoms are not to be seen, the baby may seem normal until the brain starts to develop. The earlier a diagnosis for the child can be made, the better chance the child has at reducing the severity of their disorder. As far as diagnosing this disorder, signs can be one or more of the following: "Hypotonia- floppy muscles, decreased muscle tone, Hypertonia- stiff muscles, muscle spasms, with varying severity, dystonia-a mix between hypotonia and hypertonia, Fixed joints- where the bones are fused together, usually resulting is unusual posture"(Rolv T Lie 2014). Since the muscles aren't functioning correctly on a child who has cerebral palsy, this usually results in an abnormal posture, due to the muscles being too tight or not tight enough. The muscles aren't coordinated, to maintain usual posture. This makes everyday tasks such as brushing teeth, combing hair, opening and closing doors, walking etc. difficult if not impossible to accomplish by themselves. "Gait abnormalities are also usually present in a child diagnosed with cerebral palsy. Gait is the way someone walks, referring to if they walk in-toeing, which is where the toes point inward, out-toeing is where the toes point outwards. Spastic gait: where one leg drags when walking, Steppage gait: where a toe or toes drag when walking" (E. Alberman 2012). As well as the posture and movement, reflexes are also affected when a child has cerebral palsy. A child's response to stimuli may be delayed or nonexistent. Doctors can tell if a child is showing signs of cerebral palsy when they are an infant, if the child doesn't respond to stimuli as a child with normal functioning brain would. For example, regular posture or when placed in odd positions, the child should correct itself by returning back to a normal posture. A doctor can tell if the child possibly has cerebral palsy, if this not completed.
